‘Wouldn’t any parent do that?’ Chris replies.
‘I’m sure they would,’ I reply. ‘And I’m sure they would do the same for me, if I needed it.’
Like if, for example, I lost my job because my boss found out I’d been sleeping in his bed. I’m sure they would visit me in prison too.
‘The problem is how she’s been treating them,’ I continue. ‘She loves to act like the baby and they love to treat her that way, but she’s been taking the piss. My parents don’t have much money and she’s completely sponging off them. She lets my mum run around after her, she uses their cards to shop online – and they let her, because they’re too soft. My mum feels sorry for her. She’ll make her all her favourite foods, and make excuses for her behaviour, because she’s “had her heart broken” but, come on, enough is enough.’
‘Doesn’t she have a job?’ Chris asks curiously.
‘Claire’s ex was her manager, at the pet shop where she works, so no, the job kind of went out of the window with the man and the home.’
‘So, she’s with your parents tonight then?’
‘Well, get this, because this is the straw that broke the camel’s back,’ I rant on. He’s got me started now. ‘To supposedly say thank you for everything they’ve done for her, she bought them a spa trip with an overnight stay in a hotel.’
‘Sounds nice,’ he says.
‘Yeah, except obviously she bought them it with their own money, and she also booked herself a place to go with them, and she booked it for New Year’s Eve. And she didn’t think it was right to use their money on me, so she only booked it for the three of them.’
‘OK, that’s mean,’ Chris says. ‘Couldn’t she have asked your parents if you could go too?’
‘Claire was already mad at me because I called her out,’ I explain. ‘My parents were too nice to tell her to sort her life out. I politely offered to help her find a new job and a place to live and that was it, she fell out with me. She’s my sister and I love her but she can be so stubborn. I only wanted to help her, and my parents, but now we’re hardly speaking. Christmas Day was unbearable, so I’m happy not being with them tonight. Of course, I would rather be with my friends.’
‘But you’re stuck here with me,’ Chris says with a sigh.
Suddenly I feel a bit bad, for implying that Chris isn’t my friend, but he isn’t, is he?
‘I didn’t mean…’
As I step towards him I lose my footing and head straight for the floor. Luckily I narrowly avoid landing on the hard garage floor. Instead, I land on a big fluffy pile of snow and while it isn’t painful, it is absolutely freezing, and I can feel the wetness soaking through my clothes.
‘Shit, are you OK?’ Chris asks.
‘Yeah, I’m fine,’ I insist, jumping to my feet, dusting myself down. ‘Just cold and wet and kind of embarrassed.’
‘Why don’t you go have a bath and put some dry clothes on,’ Chris insists. ‘I can finish up here.’
‘Are you sure?’ I reply.
‘Of course,’ he says. ‘You’ll soon feel the cold in wet clothes. Go, have a bath, and wait there for further instructions.’
I raise an eyebrow.
‘Well, that sounds interesting,’ I say.
‘It is interesting,’ he replies with a smile. ‘If I were you, I’d get a move on.’
‘OK,’ I say.
There’s an undeniable spring in my step as I head for the bathroom. I can’t believe I’m only just saying this now, after everything that has happened so far, but things just got very interesting…
Chapter Seven
Baths are officially ruined for me, forever, and it’s all because of this bath I am in right now. I will never be able to enjoy another bath again.
So deep it should technically be classed as a pool. So silky smooth – unlike my bath at home, which has this invisible layer of fuzz that no product seems to be able to shift. The water is so warm, the bubbles smell so good, and as if all that wasn’t enough I just found the control panel for the jets. Massage jets! I would have lived a much happier life, never knowing massage jets existed, because now I want them so bad. I’ll just have to make the most of them while I’m here.
I can’t stop thinking about what Chris told me about his mum, and how devastated he must feel at this time of year. I almost feel bad, for telling about my selfish sister woes, because it’s hardly a comparable problem, is it? I know how pushed out I felt, and how it made me feel like I couldn’t spend New Year’s Eve with my parents, but at least I know they’re alive and well, and I can see them any other day. Chris will never see his mum again and, because he’s stuck here, his poor dad is probably all alone.
